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Right in front of the Hukuru
Miskiiy is a palace Mulee-aage, built in 1906 by Sultan Mohamed Shamsuddeen
III. The National Museum is housed in an Edwardian colonial-style building
of three storeys, with amazing collection of artifacts from past giving
an idea of the unique and rich culture and history of this island nation.
The Another tourist attraction
is Islamic Centre, which is the most vivid architectural landmark of Male'.
The spectacular golden dome in all its majesty dominates the skyline. The
Centre completed in 1984 consists of a mosque big enough for 5000 people,
an Islamic library, conference hall, classrooms and offices.
The main commercial area
is located on the northern waterfront of Male'. This area is the main hub
of trade and activity through out the day. The waterfront and the by-lanes
in the area are crowded with shops stocked with a variety of goods. On
your tour of the capital, you can visit the Male' Fish Market and the Local
Market selling a range of local produce. Catch the scene in mid-afternoon
as fishing 'dhonis' start returning with their day's catch. The catch,
mainly tuna are carried across the road into the open-sided market and
laid out on the tiled floors. As fast, as the fish are brought in they
are bought and taken away by people. The market is kept scrupulously clean,
washed down each day and disinfected.
If you want to enjoy
an especially wonderful view of the country, try an air excursion tours
by a seaplane. A glimpse of these wonderful islands from the air is an
unforgettable sight.
The resorts in the Maldives
offer a wide variety of water sports like diving and snorkeling. Windsurf
schools or water sports centers in the resorts are often equipped with
one or more catamarans and a few kayaks or canoes. Some resorts offer only
non-motorized water sports. However many of the resorts offer you the chance
of testing your skills to the limits, at water-skiing, jet skiing, parasailing,
body surfing, knee boarding and fun with banana riding and ringo riding.
You can also enjoy windsurfing
on your tours of Maldives. The windsurfing is done in the large lagoons
that surround most of the islands. These lagoons with waist deep water
for hundreds of meters with soft sandy bottoms and the protective barrier
provided by the house reef, offer safe conditions for windsurfing, especially
for beginners. All windsurf schools and water sports centers have the basic
equipment for windsurfing, and in most cases one or more catamarans and
a few canoes. Each island offers a beautiful house-reef that you could
snorkel in everyday.
Those resorts with far out
reefs have boats that take snorkellers to the reef. You can rent the mask
and fins from the dive schools if you need them. Explore the under water
world on your Maldives tour. The variety and abundance of colorful fish
in the reefs surrounding the islands and the atolls would fill you with
amazement and disbelief. Water-skiing is another water sport offered by
many resorts and a must activity on your tour of Maldives. You can rent
speedboats and water skis for rent on an hourly or daily basis. Most of
the bigger resorts offer the excitement and fun of parasailing. Some offer
instruction for beginners. Almost all the resorts offer fishing, night
fishing being the most popular. In night fishing, the boat is anchored
at a reef just before sunset. Many resorts also organize morning fishing
and big game fishing. The favorite catch is the red snapper. Many resorts
also organize morning fishing and big game fishing. Morning fishing, like
big-game fishing involves trolling outside the atoll, usually along the
outer atoll reef.
Most of the hotels in
the Maldives are called tourist resorts. A tourist resort, by the Maldivian
definition, is an island all by itself. Every resort island has its own
beach. Fringing the inner lagoon, you will normally find what we call the
'house reef' here. The house reef separates the island and its inner lagoon
from the deeper water outside. You will discover that the landscaping has
been done round the natural vegetation. The only man-made edifices on your
resort would probably be the rooms and suites as well as the resort facilities
that are on offer. Finally, all Resorts offer recreational facilities that
include water sports and activities. Resorts set amidst incredible natural
beauty offer modern services, delectable food and extremely hospitable
service and personalized attention to smallest details
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